The Scottish Government

Crime and Criminal Justice Research Findings No. 34
1999
An Evaluation of the Teenwise Alcohol Projects
Simon Anderson and Becki Sawyer, Social Research Unit, System Three

Main Findings

• In all the study areas, there was a widespread perception that underage drinking was common, though relatively few of those interviewed felt that it was much worse than in the past or than in other parts of the country. There was, however, a view that young people were beginning to drink at an earlier age and that excessive or binge drinking was becoming more common.
• Despite the recent media focus on 'alcopops', in terms of routine consumption of alcohol, these do not appear to be the problem. Vodka appears to play a particularly important role among younger teenagers who do most of their drinking outside - it is easy to disguise and consume and is especially potent.
• There is little evidence of young people purchasing alcohol directly or stealing alcohol from home - the bulk of alcohol consumed by underage drinkers appears to have been supplied by older teenagers who are often old enough to purchase it legally.
• It appears that, in all four project areas, there was a reduction in public drinking by young people during the summer of 1997, but whether this can be directly attributed to TAP is unclear, since there have been important other developments, such as the introduction of new legislation. There is also an important question about whether underage drinking per se has been reduced or whether it has simply been displaced to more secluded locations.
• Young people tended to make clear distinctions between the acceptability of alcohol and the acceptability of drugs. This appeared to be supported by a tacit message from parents that they would rather their children were drinking than experimenting with drugs. In terms of alcohol education, young people favoured 'non-judgemental' approaches which provided basic information but left them to make up their own minds.
• There are important questions raised by TAP, including the need for educational and enforcement approaches to be supported by the provision of diversionary activities for young people; the importance of linking short-term local initiatives to regional and national strategies; and the need for models which are appropriate to deprived urban - as well as small town and rural - locations.

Introduction

In June 1997, an experimental campaign was launched by The Scottish Office to tackle some of the problems associated with underage drinking in Scotland. The Teenwise Alcohol Projects (TAP) were conceived as a series of 'police-led, community-based' initiatives, involving six project locations across five police force areas.

The Social Research Unit at System Three was commissioned to examine the implementation and impact of the campaign. The resulting research involved a variety of techniques; several different groups of respondents; and a focus which shifted between the nature of the problem itself and specific responses to that problem (i.e. the TAP campaign). Three of the TAP project areas - Livingston, Westhill and Carnoustie/ Monifieth - were treated as case study areas and examined in particular detail.

Young people and alcohol: the nature of the problem

Through self-completion questionnaires and depth interviews with young people, the research sought to build up a picture of what, where and why young people drink. It also examined their experiences of drinking and drunkenness and the most common sources of alcohol for this age group.

Though young people, parents and police alike felt underage drinking to be relatively common in most of the TAP areas, few felt that it was necessarily more of a problem than elsewhere or that it was a 'new' problem. However, there was a widespread perception that children were starting to drink (and undertake other perceived 'adult' activities) at a younger age and that excessive or binge drinking was becoming more common.

Almost all of the young people who took part in the survey (98%) had tasted alcohol at some point, with 85% having had 'a whole alcoholic drink'.

Across the sample as a whole, over half (52%) said they had been drunk on at least one occasion, rising to 71% of 15 year-olds and 85% of 16 year-olds. The average age at which this first happened was between 12 and 13 years-old, lending support to the notion that this is a particularly critical age group. As a rough indicator of the extent of intoxication, survey respondents were asked if they had ever been sick from drinking alcohol: 38% said they had and one in five (20%) said this had happened on more than one occasion.

The results of the research paint a mixed picture in relation to alcopops. Although a high proportion of young people had tried them or named them as their favourite drink, their popularity tended to decline with age. For example, the popularity of Hooch and other alcopops peaks at 26% of those aged 13 and is lowest among 16 year-olds (at 12%). The popularity of vodka by contrast rises from just 3% among 11 and 12 year-olds to 16% of 14 year-olds and 37% of those aged 16.

The qualitative interviews appear to confirm the association of alcopops with the youngest age groups. They were generally regarded as too expensive and too weak by older drinkers, who tended to favour vodka (girls) and beer/lager (boys). Vodka appears to play a particularly important role among 13 to 15 year-olds who do most of their drinking outside - it is easy to disguise and consume and is especially potent.

Much of young people's drinking does seem to take place in public, though this declines with age, as both boys and girls start to seek out more 'adult' forms of consumption.

There was little evidence that young people were purchasing alcohol directly, since most felt they would be known or recognised in local shops. This was not seen as an insurmountable problem, however, since some felt confident about buying from shops in other areas and many were able to get older friends or acquaintances to buy alcohol for them. There was some evidence of younger people taking alcohol from home, but this was not seen as a sustainable source because of the risk of discovery. By far the most common source of alcohol appears to be other young people who are old enough to purchase alcohol legally.

Policing underage drinking

In relation specifically to underage drinking, there was a general acceptance among young people that the police should do something about people 'who are really out of it'. There was also a widespread view among young people, however, that those who have been drinking but are not causing any trouble should be left alone.

The parents of young people who had been picked up by the police were generally supportive of the police action, though there was some concern that their child would now have a reputation and be 'singled out' in the future.

The experience of being caught by the police did not seem to deter young people from drinking, but it did tend to alter where (and sometimes what) they drank.

It is very difficult to assess the impact of the TAP projects on levels of underage drinking. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the visibility of the problem in most areas over the summer months was less than would have been expected. However, TAP was accompanied in some areas by the introduction of bye-laws and, nationally, by new legislation governing the confiscation of alcohol. Even if underage drinking in public has declined, there is no guarantee that underage drinking per se has reduced and there is some evidence of a 'displacement' effect.

'Drink talking': Young people and alcohol education

There is a central difficulty in alcohol education with young people - the fact that those under 18 are being warned about the perils of an activity which is an almost wholly accepted part of adult culture. Thus, there is a danger that young people will see educational programmes as hypocritical, especially if they are seen as simply telling them not to drink. Approaches which focus on the adverse health consequences of alcohol are also undermined by young people's own experience of drinking and by a perception that such dangers are overstated.

Some young people did still see a role for alcohol education but they favoured non-judgemental approaches which provided basic information but left them to make up their own minds. In terms of the delivery of alcohol education, there was also some preference expressed for the 'survivor' approach used in drugs education (e.g. Calton Athletic).

Young people tended to make clear distinctions between the acceptability of alcohol and the acceptability of drugs. This appeared to be supported by a tacit message from parents that they would rather their children were drinking than experimenting with drugs.

There was a widespread recognition among parents, especially the parents of 15 and 16 year-olds, that they could not stop their children from drinking and that the emphasis should be on 'drawing the line' or not 'going over the top'.

Working with licensees

There was a generally positive relationship between the police and the off-sales trade in most of the TAP areas, though the possibility was noted for a tension in this relationship due to a perception on the part of the latter that the police were out to 'fix them' for sales to under-eighteens.

Interestingly, less than a third of off-sales staff felt that underage drinking posed particular problems for their store. This did not seem to reflect a lack of concern about the issue but, rather, a general confidence in their ability to deal with it. Although 81% reported occasional incidents involving underage purchase attempts, just 3% said this happened on a daily basis.

There was some variation in terms of the type of identification which would be accepted, with Portman Group 'Proof of Age' cards and passports being seen as the most reliable. More experienced staff also employed less formal methods in deciding whether somebody was old enough, such as studying their reactions for any sign of nervousness.

Although the 'Proof of Age' cards were often seen as a reliable form of identification, only 54% of the sample had heard of the scheme. There was, however, some evidence that police activity in the TAP areas had led to an increase in applications for the cards over the course of the campaign period.

Despite not having the threat of prosecution themselves, most off-sales staff did seem committed to preventing purchase attempts on behalf of younger people. It was widely felt, however, to be very difficult to identify such individuals or to deal with them appropriately.

Over a third of off-sales premises kept a record of refusals to sell alcohol. This figure was much higher among off licences (78%) and supermarkets (61%) than among general/convenience stores (29%).

The liaison with off-sales through the 'Cops in Shops' initiative was generally felt by police officers to have reinforced existing relationships with the licensed trade or to have helped build new ones.

Less than half of the off-sales staff interviewed (44%) said they had undergone any training on the subject of dealing with underage purchasers. Just over a quarter (26%) felt that it would be useful for them or their staff to have (further) training in this area. 11% of respondents (n=9) had taken part in licensing forums. These were generally thought to be useful as a way of addressing underage drinking and of establishing contact between licensees as well as between licensees and the police.

Conclusions

The research, and the experience of running the various TAP projects, has helped to clarify the nature of the problem. In terms of routine consumption, alcopops do not appear to be the problem. While relatively large numbers of young people have tried these drinks, the drinking patterns of older age groups (whose consumption is likely to be heavier) are more likely to revolve around more traditional products such as strong cider, vodka and lager/beer.

In terms of the source of alcohol, it is clear that the main problem is now not underage purchasing but purchases made on behalf of young people. More attention needs to be given to how this might be tackled.

It does seem that there was a reduction in public drinking by young people in all of the TAP areas during the summer of 1997. Whether this can be attributed to the campaign itself - or whether it reflects other developments, such as the introduction of new legislation - is not clear. There is also an important question about whether the level of underage drinking per se has been reduced or whether it has simply been displaced to more secluded locations. The potential risks associated with alcohol consumption in these less visible locations need to be acknowledged.

It is evident that there is a missing link in the TAP approach, namely the provision of any diversionary activities for young people. While education and enforcement have important roles to play, there is also a need to provide positive alternatives for young people.

There is a need for a long-term perspective which links initiatives such as TAP to developments at a regional and national level. That said, it is clear that well-run short-term initiatives can provide an important building block for future multi-agency work. There is also a need to consider the extent to which the TAP model can be 'exported' to more deprived urban areas, where existing relationships between the police and the local community may sometimes be less positive than those in the six TAP areas.

In conclusion, TAP undoubtedly contributed to a reduction in the visibility of underage drinking in most of the project areas during the summer of 1997, if not to a reduction in underage drinking per se. Of greater long-term significance, however, have been its effect in raising the profile of the issue among key groups and in providing a focus for multi-agency discussion of the problem.